We have been discussing the importance of volunteering in our society today. Our school is also involved in some volunteer projects, to help the community in need, and we will certainly help, too! Here are some of our comments on the topic:

Everyone should take some time to help other people, for us it is just one hour of our life but for them it is so important. We can do several types of volunteer work, like donating blood, being with people that don't have a family, being in the hospitals, etc. Every year I participate in an organization called "Banco Alimentar" - a food bank - sometimes in stores, or in the warehouse, and that feels amazing. Patrícia Pinheiro 10ºCSE2

In my opinion volunteer work is very important. When we do volunteer work we show availability to help those organizations who are asking for help. And by helping those organizations, the people who are going through difficulties can see that there are people who cares about them. I have never done volunteer work, but I would like to do it, specially at IPO, where there are many teenagers who are 15 like me and I would like to help them having a different day ( talking, watching films, etc...) and know about their difficult life stories. Mariana Antunes 10ºCSE2

I think volunteer work is very important and interesting because it helps the truly needy, without thinking about the money, and it is one of the few things today that shows that the human race is minimally good and does not think only of themselves. Many of us care about others and want the good of humanity. I will do volunteer work because it must be very gratifying to see that what you do can help others. Letícia Alves, 10º CSE2

Personally, I think volunteering should be a part of everyone's life. There's always something we can give, there is always a way to help someone. It doesn't have to be money. Actually, "donating yourself" - as in love, knowledge, friendship, hope - is probably more helpful and valuable than money. Volunteering is one of the most touching and incredible things that I've ever experienced. And I wish I had more time to help more. All the hours that you spend working for a cause are worth it when you realize that you've made someone's life better. Matilde Campos 10ºCSE2

I think volunteer work is very important because it helps people, not only the ones that are being helped but the ones who help too, because they get a felling of fulfilment and feel happy about helping the others. There are lots of volunteer work that people can do and it changes the world for better.​ Gonçalo Gamito 10ºCSE2

In my opinion, everybody should volunteer. I think it is really good, because it helps people through hope, inspiration and happiness. I want to be a volunteer in the future, because it is a good experience; I want to help poor people and elderly people. Tiago Santiago, 10º CSE2

I think volunteer work is really good, because we can help people and make a difference. In my opinion, volunteering is a good way to learn new values, like solidarity. If we help people, we make the difference in many lives and they make our life better, too. Volunteer work is a good way to exercise our power to make other people happier and live easier lives. Helena Ferreira, 10ºCSE2

In my point of view, volunteer work is very important, because we can help the people who need it most and change the world. I did volunteer work a few times, one of them in the food bank (banco alimentar). I really liked it and it made me feel better with myself. Ricardo Branco 10ºCSE2

I think volunteering is a really important thing because helping others, caring and just giving support is a really good thing to do. If we want to be helped, we might as well help others, it makes sense, actually. The same thing with animals. I wouldn't like to see my dogs in the same circumstances as the street dogs that were abandoned. It honestly breaks my heart and I'm pretty sure it isn't only my heart that breaks. In the end, I think we don't lose anything when helping others, we just gain. We gain respect, sometimes friends or just personal joy. Bruno Marques, 10ºLH3

Word Cloud by Matilde Campos 10ºCSE2.

Volunteering is a simple way to help others, but it can take some degree of complexity. Helping others is very important because it reveals affection and solidarity. Our life is a mystery and tomorrow we can be the ones needing help. It will be very important to have it granted to us. João Martins, 10ºLH1

Regardless of who we are, we can’t change the fact that we are human, and being human is not about having a brain or similar bodies; it’s about having a heart and a soul, it’s about caring and worrying, it’s about having humanity. We can’t be indifferent to all the sad people that try so hard to keep a smile on their faces and get through the day, even knowing that it’s just one more day and that tomorrow will probably be worse. We can’t just look away and pretend that we don’t see those people. Today, this is our reality, but we don’t know what will happen tomorrow or the day after tomorrow. So many people sleep on the streets, so many children are sick in hospitals, so many elderly people are completely alone and don’t have someone to keep a smile on their faces or to give them a reason to keep holding on. So many people just lose the hope of getting better because they don’t have any help or motivation. What could be better than being the person that gives them precisely that? Volunteer for a better world, volunteer for our humanity. Celina Pereira, 10ºLH1